Act Two

Act Two

Act Two

Act Two

Summary

It is Christmas day. The messiness of the area around
the Christmas tree indicates that the Christmas Eve celebration
has taken place. Nora paces the room uneasily, muttering to herself
about her dilemma. The nanny comes in with Nora’s costume, and Nora
asks her what would happen to the children if she, Nora, disappeared altogether.
Mrs. Linde enters and agrees to mend Nora’s costume for her. Nora
tells Mrs. Linde that Dr. Rank is sick with a disease he inherited
from his father, who was sexually promiscuous. Mrs. Linde guesses
that Dr. Rank is the mysterious source of Nora’s loan, but Nora
denies the charge. Mrs. Linde remarks that Nora has changed since
the previous day. Torvald returns, and Nora sends Mrs. Linde to
see the children, explaining that “Torvald hates the sight of sewing.”

Alone with Torvald, Nora again asks him to save Krogstad’s
job. Torvald tells her that Mrs. Linde will replace Krogstad at
the bank. Torvald says that Krogstad is an embarrassment and that
he cannot work with him any longer. He explains that they are on
a first-name basis only because they went to school together and
that this -familiarity humiliates him. When Nora calls Torvald’s
reasoning petty, he becomes upset and sends off a letter dismissing
Krogstad. He then goes into his study.

After Torvald exits, Dr. Rank enters and hints that he
expects something bad to happen soon. When it becomes apparent that
he is referring to his health, Nora is visibly relieved that Dr.
Rank is speaking about his own problem and not hers. Dr. Rank tells
her that he will soon die and that he doesn’t want his best friend,
Torvald, to see him in his sickbed. When the end is near, he tells
Nora, he will leave a calling card with a black cross across it
to indicate that his death is imminent.

Nora begins to flirt with Dr. Rank, coquettishly showing
him her new stockings. She hints that she has a great favor to ask
Dr. Rank (presumably she would like him to intervene on Krogstad’s
behalf). Before she is able to ask her favor, however, Dr. Rank
confesses his love for her. This disclosure disturbs Nora, and afterward
she refuses to request anything from him, even though he begs her
to let him help. He asks whether he should “leave for good” now
that he has proclaimed his love for her, but Nora is adamant that
he continue to keep Torvald company. She tells Dr. Rank how much
fun she has with him, and he explains that he has misinterpreted
her affection. Nora says that those whose company she prefers are
often different than those she loves—when she was young, she loved
her father, but she preferred to hide with the maids in the cellar
because they didn’t try to dictate her behavior.

The maid, Helene, enters and gives Nora a caller’s card.
Nora ushers Dr. Rank into the study with her husband and urges the
doctor to keep Torvald there.

Krogstad enters and announces that he has been fired.
He says that the conflicts among Nora, himself, and Torvald could
be solved if Torvald would promote him to a better job in the bank.
Nora objects, saying that her husband must never know anything about her
contract with Krogstad. She implies that she has the courage to kill
herself if it means she will absolve Torvald of the need to cover up
her crime. Krogstad tells her that even if she were to commit suicide, her
reputation would still be in his hands. Krogstad leaves, dropping
a letter detailing Nora’s secret in the letterbox on the way out.